So that we can becom better acquainted with our emotions and learn to master them, let's examine the most common emotions, starting with the most negative:
Apathy
Only slightly more energetic than shame, apathy is the emotion with the least amount of life energy. Apathy is the emotion felt during depression. Everyone has bad days, to be sure, but ongoing and severe apathetic episodes can be quite dangerous to one's wealth first, and then health.
NLP is not really effective with severely depressed individuals, primarily because of the blocking out of the meaning in language patterns that would otherwise be effective in a person with more energy. For severely depressed individuals, refer them to a healthcare practitioner, then when deemed safe, NLP can be called on to help build a brighter future.
In an apathetic state, we feel as though desire is dead and it's no use. We can't do anything, and no one else can help. We feel dense, heavy and see no way out. We withdraw and play weak so we won't get hurt. Our minds can get so noisy that we may go numb. The pictures we have are the most limited and destructive so that we see only failure and how we can't and no one else can, as well. We have little or no energy to act on our pictures and thoughts because inwardly we are being pulled in so many conflicting directions.
It takes quite an initial boost, jolt or shock to move us from this stuck state, and once we manage to break free of apathy, it requires a lot of momentum just to keep from being pulled back in by its powerful gravity.
Here are some of the feelings and words that dominate the thoughts of those in apathy:
Grief
Grieving is a natural process for everyone who experiences a loss. In time, most people cycle in and out of grief after the loss, whose severity is a determinant of the length of the process. However, sometimes people are unable to catch the wave out of the depths of grief, in which case they require assistance.
In a state of grief, we want someone else to help us because we feel that we can't do anything on our own, but we hope maybe someone else can. We cry out in pain for someone to do it for us. Our body has a little more energy than in apathy, but it is so contracted that it is painful. Our mind is a little less cluttered than in apathy but still very noisy and opaque. We picture our pain and loss, often getting lost in these pictures. Our thoughts revolve around how much we hurt and what we have lost and if we can get anyone else to help. In most cases, taking the time to adjust to letting go of the loss is the best medicine for grief. The process cannot be rushed, but it can be facilitated by receiving support for day-to-day needs while the healing goes on.
Here are some of the feelings and words that dominate our experience during episodes of grief:
Fear
We have the emotion of fear to thank for our existence. Without fear, our ancestors long since would have been killed jumping from high places, drowned in tempestuous oceans, or consumed by stronger and more cunning predators.
Nothing clouds our higher mind quite like fear. In a state of fear, we instinctively strike out, run away or freeze. This is great when the danger is real and immediate, but the problem with fear is that we succumb to it even when the danger is not real, or when it is a low probability, or far away in the future. When experiencing fear, our body has a little more energy than in grief, but it is still so contracted that it is mostly painful. Anxiety attacks can arise out of nowhere. Our mind is a little less cluttered than in grief but still very noisy and opaque. Our pictures and thoughts are about doom and destruction. All we can think and see is how we will get hurt, what we may lose and how we can protect ourselves and those around us.
Here are some of the feelings and words that dominate us during times of fear:
Lust or Desire
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